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Trout Studios: Statement of Faith

Because Everyone Has Got To Believe In Something

Apostles Creed

I believe in God, the
Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus
Christ, God's only Son, our Lord, who was conceived
by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered
under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to
the dead. On the third day he rose again; he ascended
into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the
Father, and he will come again to judge the living and
the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy
catholic church, the communion of saints, the
forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and
the life everlasting. AMEN.

Nicene Creed

We
believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of
heaven and earth, of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord,
Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of
the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true
God, begotten, not made, of one
Being
with the Father;
through him all things
were
made. For us and for
our salvation he came down
from heaven, was
incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and
became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under
Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the
third day he rose again in accordance with the
Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the
right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to
judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have
no end.

We
believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the
Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who has
spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one holy
catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one
baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the
resurrection of the dead, and the life of
the world to come. Amen.

The
artistic journey begins with
a simple desire to create. But this
is only
the beginning. This seed to create will in time
grow into a full blown philosophy of art-making. And
like plants themselves, these philosophies come in all
shapes and sizes, from weeds to roses to lilies. All
practicing artists whether Christian or non-Christian
are driven by some philosophy of art-making whether they
are able to articulate it or not. In what follows, I've
tried to articulate for you nine pursuits of the true
artist. Not "true" as defined by degrees of talent, but
rather by their close association with the truth -
Christ himself It is out of this association that I
offer these nine points, which if pursued with
faithfulness, will in my opinion, help the Christian
artist develop a philosophy of art-making that is
honoring to the Lord.

1.
EXCELLENCE IN CRAFT

True
artists pursue excellence in their craft. They purpose
to develop skills on par with the talent given them.
They pray for the Holy Spirit of God to fill them with
skill, ability and knowledge. They work hard, for as the
scripture says: "Aft hard work brings a profit, but mere
talk leads only to poverty. " They study models to
learn why some things work and others don't. They doift
waste their time in reinventing the wheel. They get on
with it. They are productive. Peter Kreeft in his book
Making Choices wrote: "A ballet dancer becomes free to
make beautiful moves only by conforming herself to laws
and principles in disciplined practice. A scholar
becomes free from ignorance only by conforming to truth,
to data, to facts."

2. MAKE THE
MOST OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY

True artists purpose not to
live in a world of "if onlys" but instead make the most
of every opportunity. They do not wait for a national
platform to really apply themselves. They give their
best to God in their home church or university, being
seen as faithful in the little things that they might be
found ready and prepared for the bigger. They recognize
that contemporary tools are nice to have, but are no
substitute for astonishing ideas.;

3.
FIND BALANCE BETWEEN WORK AND REST

True
artists purpose to find a balance between work and rest.
Foolish is the man that thinks he's succeeding because
of all the talk about how hard he is working. As
the scripture says, "Better a little with the fear of
the Lord than great wealth with turmoil. " Rather
than

We Believe
In One Lord
Jesus Christ
the only Son
of God anxiety
regarding basic provisions, true
artists memorize and trust God's promises
to provide.

4.
PRAY FOR HUMILITY:

True
artists pray for humility and don’t struggle endlessly
against circumstances designed to humble them.
Instead they see difficult circumstances as a provision
from God and an answer to their prayers. They welcome
the discipline of the Lord because it is a testimony of
his fatherly love and a sure sign that he is changing
them incrementally into the man or woman he has designed
them to be.

5.
WORK AGAINST APATHY

True
artists work against
apathy, indifference, unconcern and disdain, They
purpose in their lives and their art to do both in such
a way as to lead men and women away
from such worthless occupation of the mind and heart.

6.
LOVE THE CHURCH

True
artists purpose to love the Church despite indifference
or opposition to their work. Though indifference is
their enemy they separate it from the brother or sister
who is seduced by it. They are eager to find their
place in the Body and do not
consider themselves exempt from fellowship and
church stewardship responsibilities. They love the
Church and do all they can to build
it up, for how can you love Christ and hate his church?

7.
PURPOSE TO THINK

True
artists purpose to think.
Philippians 4:8 is their text. They meditate on what is
lovely and truthful and
desire such things in their art. They never stop
thinking. They
are curious to know what makes things work. They know
the power of ideas and
pray to useSt Frances. only
those ideas whose consequences produce fruit
in keeping with the Spirit of God.

8.
KNOW MISSION AND DESTINATION

True
artists know their mission and destination. They know
where they are going and what they are called to do
along the
way. Their panoramic vision keeps their eyes on the
promise ahead. It keeps their eyes on what has gone
before in history. And when they begin to stumble about
the road from fatigue or hunger or loneliness their eyes
keep them from failing into foolishness at either side
of the road.

.

9.
9. IMITATE JESUS

True
artists imitate Jesus. They pursue greatness in craft
in order to give the Lord the best fruit Of the talent
he has given them, not to build themselves up. They
understand that true greatness is found in the heart of
the servant. After Jesus had washed the feet of his
disciples he told them: "I have set an example that you
should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth,
no servant is greater than his master, nor is a
messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that
you know these things you will be blessed if you do
them." (John 13:15-17)

This
scripture from Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase of the New
Testament best summarizes my philosophy of art-making:

"So if
you're serious about living this new resurrection life
with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which
Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the
ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you.
Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ
- that's where the action is. See things from his
perspective." Colossians 3:1 (2)